"Cherish every moment! Blink and it will be gone!" people say, but even when we seek to live fully and without regrets, it is impossible for anyone to maximize their appreciation of everything that ever happens to them. Many blog posts I have read address this issue in the context of parenting, but today I would like to talk about the flip side: adults telling youth to enjoy every moment. "Don't wish these years away! I know you want to grow up, but once your childhood is gone, you can never get it back... When you're an adult, you'll wish you were a child again!" It's all true, but when this message is repeated by people wistful for their own childhoods, it engenders a sense that adulthood is inferior and that one must cling to youth and childhood at all costs.
My childhood was wonderful, but when it was time to transition into adolescence, I struggled to face the idea of growing up. I had never liked change, and ever since I was small, it had alarmed me to see how most adults were so distanced from their own childhoods that they did not understand children's minds or have much imagination. I wanted to mature, but I was afraid that I would change so much I would lose myself. Instead of viewing the teenage years as a gateway into greater life, I believed that this was the end of all things, and I sometimes felt a sense of guilt and panic as I tried to Make the Most of Every Moment.
All around me, teens and adults in different life stages reinforced my belief that everything was over once you were an adult. According to them, if someone looked forward to getting driver's licenses, going to college, and getting a job, they were laughably naïve and had no idea what stresses, responsibilities, and problems those new privileges would bring. That just terrified me even more, and I wanted to wring the last bit of joy out of my childhood before it was gone forever.
When I was seventeen and my life started changing with a driver's license, a job, and increased freedom and responsibility, the feared unknown became familiar, and I realized that it was not so bad after all. I still was imaginative, loved to write, was fond of my stuffed animals, and liked reading children's books. I enjoyed everything on an even deeper level, because even though I had changed, I remembered how things used to be, and got the current mindset on top of it. My childhood, instead of slipping into a haze of confusion, is the foundation on which I build my current life.
Good books I read as a girl explained that the best grown-ups were the ones who remembered what it was like to be a child. Back then, the idea reinforced for me the idea that adulthood was an inferior state, but now, I see the matter quite differently. Childhood and adulthood are two different, equally worthwhile stages of human existence, and the only reason these adult authors could write so beautifully and insightfully about human experience and the worth of childhood is because they had grown up. When you are young, your experience is limited to a handful of years, and even though you get to view the world through innocent, wonder-filled eyes, you miss out on many beautiful things in life simply because you are not yet ready for or aware of them. As an adult, you have the memories of childhood and the experiences you could barely comprehend back then.
There is always a sense of loss when you leave behind part of your life, but growing up is nothing like what I expected or was taught to dread. Rather than being the end of freedom and wonder, it is an opportunity for expanded horizons, new encounters, and greater enjoyment of the full spectrum of life. This year has been highly significant for me, and instead of making me afraid, all this growing up thrills me: I get to develop into a functional, well-adjusted adult, instead of clinging desperately to childhood because it's all I've ever known. In fact, those years seem even more beautiful to me now than they did when I was in the midst of them, because now I have the knowledge and life experience to see childhood more truly.
My childhood was wonderful, but when it was time to transition into adolescence, I struggled to face the idea of growing up. I had never liked change, and ever since I was small, it had alarmed me to see how most adults were so distanced from their own childhoods that they did not understand children's minds or have much imagination. I wanted to mature, but I was afraid that I would change so much I would lose myself. Instead of viewing the teenage years as a gateway into greater life, I believed that this was the end of all things, and I sometimes felt a sense of guilt and panic as I tried to Make the Most of Every Moment.
All around me, teens and adults in different life stages reinforced my belief that everything was over once you were an adult. According to them, if someone looked forward to getting driver's licenses, going to college, and getting a job, they were laughably naïve and had no idea what stresses, responsibilities, and problems those new privileges would bring. That just terrified me even more, and I wanted to wring the last bit of joy out of my childhood before it was gone forever.
When I was seventeen and my life started changing with a driver's license, a job, and increased freedom and responsibility, the feared unknown became familiar, and I realized that it was not so bad after all. I still was imaginative, loved to write, was fond of my stuffed animals, and liked reading children's books. I enjoyed everything on an even deeper level, because even though I had changed, I remembered how things used to be, and got the current mindset on top of it. My childhood, instead of slipping into a haze of confusion, is the foundation on which I build my current life.
Good books I read as a girl explained that the best grown-ups were the ones who remembered what it was like to be a child. Back then, the idea reinforced for me the idea that adulthood was an inferior state, but now, I see the matter quite differently. Childhood and adulthood are two different, equally worthwhile stages of human existence, and the only reason these adult authors could write so beautifully and insightfully about human experience and the worth of childhood is because they had grown up. When you are young, your experience is limited to a handful of years, and even though you get to view the world through innocent, wonder-filled eyes, you miss out on many beautiful things in life simply because you are not yet ready for or aware of them. As an adult, you have the memories of childhood and the experiences you could barely comprehend back then.
There is always a sense of loss when you leave behind part of your life, but growing up is nothing like what I expected or was taught to dread. Rather than being the end of freedom and wonder, it is an opportunity for expanded horizons, new encounters, and greater enjoyment of the full spectrum of life. This year has been highly significant for me, and instead of making me afraid, all this growing up thrills me: I get to develop into a functional, well-adjusted adult, instead of clinging desperately to childhood because it's all I've ever known. In fact, those years seem even more beautiful to me now than they did when I was in the midst of them, because now I have the knowledge and life experience to see childhood more truly.
Often, a peer will lament to me, "Growing up is hard," but I can only half-heartedly agree. Transitioning into adulthood is always a challenge, but when you have spent the last several years of your life fearing and dreading it, the actual experience is not so bad. (In other words, being a pessimist can pay off.) Now, on my nineteenth birthday, I can be grateful for my past, satisfied with my present, and ready to trust God with my future, because I no longer feel like I have to micromanage and control my life to make the most of every fleeting moment. We must use our time wisely, make the most of our lives, and trust the one who writes our days, but never cling to one life stage because we think we'll spend the rest of our lives wanting it back.
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